She descended from the heavens like a falling star.
Lucielle.
Exarch of the Dawn.
Seraph of Judgement.
The youngest Chosen Hero to ever receive the blessing of the True Flame.
But right now?
She looked angry.
Eyes glowing gold, wings ablaze, sword twice her height crackling with divine fire.
She landed in the center of the ruined courtyard—burning holy sigils erupting beneath her feet.
Velda whistled. "Welp. That's overkill."
Zara raised her axes. "That's fun."
Lucius just stepped forward.
"Lucielle," he said. "Still hiding behind prophecy?"
She pointed her blade. "I'm here to end the blasphemy you've begun."
Lucius smiled. "Then start trying."
---
> [Boss Battle Begins: Exarch Lucielle – Blade of Dawn]
Rank: Seraph
Divine Class: Lightcaster
Passive: Every hit burns your sins into your soul.
---
The battle exploded.
Lucielle moved like light—every step instant, every swing a streak of flame.
Lucius blocked the first strike. Barely.
Zara intercepted the second, but her armor melted on impact.
"HOT! THIS IS TOO HOT!" she yelled, swinging wildly.
Claire tried to cast a barrier.
Shattered.
Lilith launched blackfire spears—deflected.
Velda unleashed three layered magic traps. Lucielle tore through all of them like paper.
"She's not a swordswoman," Velda muttered. "She's a force of nature."
---
Lucius gritted his teeth.
He stepped forward, parrying another swing.
"She fights like someone trying to prove something," he said quietly.
Lucielle's eyes narrowed. "I have nothing to prove."
"Then why are you trembling?"
Lucielle screamed, light exploding from her skin.
> [Passive Triggered: Ariadne – Reflection Severance]
Lucius sees through the divine aura.
And behind the blade…
He saw a little girl.
Scared. Alone. Crying into holy books, begging for a purpose.
Lucius hesitated.
Lucielle saw it—and screamed louder.
"You're not allowed to pity me!"
She slashed.
Lucius raised his blade—
And blocked it. Barely.
But the impact shattered the stone beneath his feet.
---
Claire ran to his side. "Lucius! You can't take another hit like that!"
"I can't hurt her," Lucius whispered. "Not with power."
Lilith stepped beside him. "Then what?"
Lucius looked at Ariadne.
And understood.
---
He sheathed his blade.
Walked toward Lucielle.
Unarmed.
---
She raised her sword. "STOP!"
He didn't.
Her light faltered.
Lucius reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You're fighting the wrong war," he whispered.
---
> [Skill Activated: Flame of the First Bond – Empathic Pulse]
Lucius shares a piece of his buried pain.
---
Lucielle gasped.
She saw it—
The loneliness.
The betrayals.
The fire.
The garden.
And the name she had long forgotten whispered in her own mind.
"…Arielle…"
She dropped her sword.
Fell to her knees.
And wept.
---
> [Boss Battle: Concluded – No Kill]
Lucielle has surrendered.
New Path Unlocked: The Last Believer
Ariadne's blade glows faintly. Approval registered.
---
Zara blinked. "You won… with feelings?"
Velda: "We're doomed."
Claire: "We're saving people, not just killing them."
Lilith stared. "He didn't break her… he freed her."
---
Lucius stood over the Exarch of Dawn.
And offered his hand.
"I'm not here to burn the world," he said. "I'm here to make it honest."
Lucielle took his hand. Trembling.
"…Then I want to help."